BlackBerry today announced the hiring of a special committee that will "explore strategic alternatives" that could range from partnerships to a complete sale of the company.

CEO and President Thorsten Heins, who will serve on the committee, said it will be business as usual at BlackBerry during this process.

"We continue to see compelling long-term opportunities for BlackBerry 10, we have exceptional technology that customers are embracing, we have a strong balance sheet and we are pleased with the progress that has been made in our transition," Heins said in a statement. "As the special committee focuses on exploring alternatives, we will be continuing with our strategy of reducing cost, driving efficiency and accelerating the deployment of BES 10, as well as driving adoption of BlackBerry 10 smartphones, launching the multi-platform BBM social messaging service, and pursuing mobile computing opportunities by leveraging the secure and reliable BlackBerry Global Data Network."

BlackBerry stressed that this exploration phase might not result in anything. But the team is considering "possible joint ventures, strategic partnerships or alliances, a sale of the company or other possible transactions."

The committee also includes Barbara Stymiest, Richard Lynch, and Bert Nordberg, and will be chaired by Timothy Dattels.

Prem Watsa, chairman and CEO of Fairfax Financial - BlackBerry's largest shareholder - will step down from the board in order to avoid a conflict of interest. "I continue to be a strong supporter of the company, the board, and management as they move forward during this process, and Fairfax Financial has no current intention of selling its shares," Watsa said.

The news comes just over a year after BlackBerry hired strategic advisors to "help the company examine ways to leverage the BlackBerry platform through partnerships, licensing opportunities and strategic business model alternatives." The company, however, has focused its efforts on the rollout of BlackBerry 10 and accompanying smartphones, but it has been slow-going in the face of competing, Android-based gadgets from the like of Samsung and HTC.

Delaying the launch of BlackBerry 10 to early 2013 led to a dismal 2012 for the firm, and it has struggled to make up for lost time. A number of businesses have also embraced Android- and iOS-based gadgets in the enterprise, cutting into BlackBerry's core market.

In late June, BlackBerry revealed that it shipped 2.7 million smartphones running BB10 during the quarter and 6.8 million smartphones overall. For comparison, Apple sold 37.4 million iPhones during the first quarter, while Nokia sold 5.6 million Lumia smartphones during the same time period.

Chloe Albanesius has been with PCMag.com since April 2007, most recently as Executive Editor for News and Features. Prior to that, she worked for a year covering financial IT on Wall Street for Incisive Media. From 2002 to 2005, Chloe covered technology policy for The National Journal's Technology Daily in Washington, DC. She has held internships at NBC's Meet the Press, washingtonpost.com, the Tate Gallery press office in London, Roll Call, and Congressional Quarterly. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism from American University...
More »

Automatic Renewal Program: Your subscription will continue without interruption for as long as you wish, unless
you instruct us otherwise. Your subscription will automatically renew at the end of the term unless you authorize
cancellation. Each year, you'll receive a notice and you authorize that your credit/debit card will be charged the
annual subscription rate(s). You may cancel at any time during your subscription and receive a full refund on all
unsent issues. If your credit/debit card or other billing method can not be charged, we will bill you directly instead. Contact Customer Service